Russia is bombarding Ukraine’s capital Kyiv with a large-scale drone and missile attack, Ukrainian officials said, with much of the city experiencing power outages.
The head of Kyiv’s military administration said this morning that the city was facing “a ballistic missile attack” and “missiles, one after another”.
At least nine people have been injured, and five of them hospitalised, Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said as high-rise apartment buildings and energy infrastructure were targeted.
Klitschko said power cuts and disruptions to the water supply had hit districts on the east bank of the Dnipro River that runs through the city.
Photos and videos of Kyiv showed entire swathes of the city left in darkness.
Russian forces have focused on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure in recent weeks as winter again approaches in the more than three-and-a-half-year-old war. A massive missile and drone attack last week hit several of Ukraine’s main gas production facilities, causing considerable damage.
Russia bombards Kyiv in large-scale drone and missile attack
A major Russian attack on central Kyiv triggered a fire in a high-rise apartment building and targeted energy sites in the early hours today, cutting power to parts of the capital, officials said.
“From the explosions that just occurred — a ballistic missile attack is ongoing. Missiles, one after another, air defence is active,” said Kyiv city military administration head Tymur Tkachenko, in an update at 2.41am local time.
Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said nine people had been injured, with five of them taken to hospital. He said power cuts and disruptions to the water supply had hit districts on the east bank of the Dnipro River that runs through the city.
Pictures posted online showed apartments ablaze as firefighters moved into position. Fragments from downed drones also struck several parts of the city.
Energy minister Svitlana Grynchuk said Russian forces had hit energy sites.”Energy experts are taking all necessary measures to minimise negative consequences,” Grynchuk said on Facebook.
“As soon as safety conditions allow, energy experts will begin clarifying the consequences of the attack and conducting restoration work.”
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Vladimir Putin is “personally afraid” of a ceasefire in the war in Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
“The head of Russia is personally afraid of a ceasefire, because once a ceasefire is in place, returning to the war would be difficult for him. To move from full-scale war to a ceasefire and then later restart a full-scale war – that’s not easy for them,” Zelensky said on X today.
“It’s not easy economically, it’s not easy with the society, and it’s not easy with the world. And certainly not easy with those countries that are still shaking Putin’s hand today. That’s why, for now, he chooses war,” he said.
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Speaking on Thursday to reporters about his recent meeting with Trump at the UN General Assembly last month, Zelensky said: “I didn’t hear a ‘no’. What I did hear was that work will continue at the technical level and that this possibility will be considered.”
He added: “The plan for ending the war won’t be easy, but it is certainly the way forward. And if Trump gives the world – above all, the Ukrainian people – the chance for such a ceasefire, then yes, he should be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
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Footage released on Wednesday (8 October) shows a huge fireball and pillars of black smoke rising into the air as emergency service workers try to tackle the blaze using foam.
Following the attacks, the National Energy Company of Ukraine said that several regions of Ukraine have been left without power.
“The situation is most difficult in the Chernihiv region, where the local power company is forced to implement three simultaneous hourly power cuts. Emergency repair work is ongoing,” the statement said.
Holly Bishop reports:
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